Spit and polish for my crowns

BY the time you read this, I will be in China eating my way through Guangzhou, the birthplace of Cantonese cuisine. The fact I can chomp away is thanks to the complex dental work I went through the last several months.

This is the third and concluding instalment of my dental journey that started with “Back in the dentist’s chair” (Aug 5) followed by “Being done in by being hasty” (Sept 16). To recap, during a long overdue check-up, my dentist identified at least eight teeth that were in very poor and vulnerable condition.

He then referred me to a prostho­dontist who specialises in restorative dentistry. A week later, I visited the specialist who examined every tooth to ascertain its condition. The findings were that my gums, roots and nerves were healthy but there were 11 teeth with huge worn-out fillings and cracks, of which nine were most at risk of fracturing any time.

If the break was severe, the tooth would have to be extracted and I would need an implant to replace it. My best bet was to save my teeth with crowns.

That detailed examination took place in late July but because of her scheduling issues, she could only start work in September. I thought of finding another specialist, but after all the extensive and costly testing, I didn’t want to start all over with another one, so I agreed to wait.

I had a planned holiday in mid-September so the agreement was to prep the teeth that needed work and complete the crowns for three teeth before my trip.

What followed was the eight-hour ­marathon that I recounted in the Sept 16 column. In hindsight, it was the stupidest thing to do at my age. The prosthodontist checked all the teeth for decay and replaced old worn-out fillings. I had several ­lidocaine injections in my gums. The ensuing numbness was the main reason I could stand all the drilling done on 11 teeth.

In our haste to get my teeth up to speed, those eight hours gave me a painful cold sore on the corner of my upper lip and a really sore back that lasted for days. Because of that, the plan for me to get permanent crowns for three teeth before I got on the plane was derailed. This meant I had to be very careful with how I ate and what I ate during the trip.

Once home, it was back to the dentist. She fixed the permanent crowns and drilled down another three teeth for temporary crowns.

I thought all my crowns would be done in good time for my Guangzhou trip as we had agreed, but as it turned out, I had issues with her that could not be resolved. I had lost confidence in her so I asked my primary dentist to take over, and thankfully he did.

In the end, my takeaway was that a ­specialist with additional training may have the knowledge but not necessarily the expertise to use those learned skills. A glaring example of this was how painful her injections were compared to the almost pain-free jabs by my “ordinary” dentist.

So now I have nine crowns with the rest of my teeth all fixed up, scaled and ­polished. They look and feel great. It’s now up to me to keep them in tip-top condition by maintaining very good dental hygiene, and my dentist had lots of advice on that.

This is my new obsession: proper and thorough cleaning of my chompers. My zirconia crowns can’t develop cavities but the trimmed down teeth underneath are still vulnerable to decay if bacteria in the form of plaque gets into the margin between crown and tooth. That is the enemy: plaque, the soft, yellow sticky film that coats teeth.

That’s why good oral hygiene is key to preventing plaque from building up and hardening into tartar. I may have drastically reduced my sugar and carbohydrate intake, but as long as there is sugar and starches in what I eat, the bad bacteria that is constantly in our mouths will still metabolise them into acid that erodes the enamel and can cause gum disease.

The only way to keep plaque from building up is to brush at least twice a day. And make each time count, literally. I used to brush for maybe 45 seconds and then rinse. But the recommended brushing time is two minutes.

Initially, that felt ridiculously long, but it got easier when I visualised my teeth as individual units that needed my loving care and attention. I set the timer on my phone and each time when it beeps, I feel quite accomplished.

That is not the end of it. I grew up flossing my teeth, thanks to Dad’s teaching, but post-crowning, I have learned I must floss correctly. From the Internet, I learned the “C-Shape” technique, which involves sliding the floss under the gums and scraping both sides of the tooth.

But I am not done yet. Mr Dentist recommends using interdental brushes. You see, floss is good for very tightly spaced teeth and the front teeth, but interdental brushes are more effective in removing plaque in wider gaps and the back teeth.

Another tip I got from my dentist is never brush immediately after drinking teeth-staining beverages like coffee. It is best to just rinse with water and wait 30 minutes before brushing. That’s because coffee is acidic and can temporarily soften the tooth enamel. Brushing immediately when the enamel is soft is like rubbing sandpaper on it. Waiting 30 minutes gives our saliva time to naturally neutralise the acid and redeposit minerals to reharden the enamel.

Amazing isn’t it? Saliva is actually the primary natural protector of our teeth and gums. And the best way to prevent your mouth from drying up is to sip water throughout the day.

With all my additional oral hygiene tools, my bathroom counter is now almost as crowded as my vanity table. My latest acquisition is an electric toothbrush, which is more efficient than the manual one. I was thrilled to find decent ones at very affordable prices in my local pharmacy. I got one with one replacement brush head for less than RM30.

I rinse my mouth and use the interdental brush after eating anything. My night time oral routine is now far longer than my facial cleaning one.

Lastly, instead of seeing my dentist only when I have a problem, I will take my six monthly check-ups seriously for professional cleaning because no matter how diligent I am, there will be plaque sneaking into minute spaces I can’t reach.

I used to place more importance on the appearance of my face as I aged. But that vanity has dropped in priority because I know I can live with my wrinkles and saggy skin but not without good, healthy teeth and gums that allow me to eat without pain or discomfort.

As legendary fashion designer Elsa Schiaparelli said, “Eating well gives a ­spectacular joy to life and contributes immensely to goodwill and happy companionship.”

I will eat and drink to that on my gourmet tour of Guangzhou!

The views expressed here are the writer’s own.